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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Brandon Lowe homered twice and Mike Zunino also connected, helping the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-2 on Saturday for their sixth consecutive win.
Ryan Yarbrough (6-3) pitched five innings of two-run ball, improving to 5-0 in his last 12 appearances. The left-hander is 8-1 in 16 appearances against Toronto.
Matt Wisler (one hit in 1 2/3 innings) and Pete Fairbanks (1 1/3 innings) combined for three innings before Diego Castillo finished the six-hitter for his 13th save. Rays relievers have given up two hits over 16 scoreless innings in the past three games.
Lowe has four career multihomer games, including May 21 against the Blue Jays.
Marcus Semien hit his 22nd homer for the Blue Jays, who have lost four of five.
Toronto led 2-1 before Tampa Bay scored three times in the third. Zunino led off the inning with his 19th homer. Kevin Kiermaier then doubled and Lowe made it 4-2 with a two-run shot off Ross Stripling (3-5).
Lowe opened the scoring with his 19th homer, connecting on the first pitch leading off the first. He has gone deep six times over his last eight games.
Randy Arozarena added an eighth-inning RBI single for the Rays.
Semien’s two-run shot gave the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead in the third.
Toronto had runners on the corners with two outs in the first when Zunino, an All-Star catcher, picked Vladimir Guerrero Jr. off first base.
Stripling allowed four runs and four hits in 3 2/3 innings.
ALL STAR SPECIAL SESSION
Rays infielder Joey Wendle found out after a 7-1 win over Toronto on Friday night that he was being added to the AL All Star team when manager Kevin Cash surprisingly called a postgame meeting.
“Got everybody together after the game and just told the guys, he said ‘Hey, Mike Trout was selected for the All-Star Game but he can’t come so they wanted the next best player in the league, Joey Wendle,’” Wendle said. “It was pretty fun.”
It is Wendle’s first All-Star selection.
LONG RUNS
Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette tracked down Austin Meadows’ first-inning foul ball near the third-base wall in front of the bullpen after starting in a defensive shift position. He nearly duplicated the feat on Meadows in the third on a foul in the bullpen area.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: LHP Ryan Borucki (left forearm flexor strain) was scheduled to make his second appearance Saturday with Triple-A Buffalo. He may have another minor league outing on Tuesday.
Rays: RHP Chris Archer (right forearm tightness) will start a rehab assignment Monday with Florida Complex League Rays. … RHP Nick Anderson (right elbow strain) had a bullpen session and remains on target to return next month.
UP NEXT
Toronto LHP Robbie Ray (6-4) and Rays LHP Rich Hill (6-3) are Sunday’s starters.
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Mark Didtler, The Associated Press
